Qudrah
Located in a lush oasis surrounded by miles of sand dunes, the ancient city of Qudrah is an important central point along the trade routes across the Dulqa. The city of Qudrah has seen its fortunes rise in recent years as foreign trade has waxed. A sandstorm in 1554 revealed a large area of ruins around 30 miles north of the city, and explorers and Basaamologists from around the world have descended upon Qudrah in response. With the ingress of native and foreign treasure hunters alike, the population has risen with a concurrent influx of laborers, tradesman, and merchants eager to supply the explorers with everything they might need, as well as many luxuries they don't. The situation has benefited the city greatly, but brings risks as well as rewards. Not a day goes by without trade caravans and parties of adventurers arriving at the city gates with horses and camels loaded with treasures from the depths of the desert. While dozens of merchant houses have joined those already plying the interior trade routes and gold-hungry mercenaries flock to exploit the desert's buried wealth, bandits and less archaeologically adept adventurers have taken to raiding excavations in progress as well as targeting poorly defended merchant caravans. This would be expected with Qudrah's economic explosion, but in the 6 months since the last khamsin season, the situation has devolved dramatically, with attacks becoming both more frequent and more deadly. History of Qudrah The oasis had been settled for centuries prior, but by Pharaoh Rakhemkar IX's command, in -1808 the city of Qudrah was founded as part of the Pharaoh's plan to establish permanent settlements in the Dulqa. Eventually Qudrah would become known as the "City of Crocodiles", after the particular reverence paid by its inhabitants to crocodiles. The city worshipped a sacred crocodile, named Ketsucha, that was embellished with gold and gems. The crocodile lived in a special temple, with sand, a pond and food. When the Ketsucha died, it was replaced by another. Qudrah was one of the few desert cities of the Basaami Empire to survive the harsh desert conditions that developed during the 10th century PC, although the Basaami Empire did lose contact with the city for a few decades. When contact was reestablished, Qudrah retained its new self-government and existed as an independent city-state for centuries. During this period, Qudrah was the capital for the nomads of the Tekkabi Tribe. In 965, Karas Odori came to Qudrah with the newly-discovered laws of Karaslaa. Qudrah, under the Tekkabi Tribe, was the first city to adopt these teachings, and is thus a holy city for the Karaslaa to this day. As more and more of the Dulqa adopted the Karaslaa religion, Qudrah became the capital of an ever-enlarging empire. It was still a small city, however, and so in 1031 Caliph Rehsem Karasi moved his capital to Qadat, where it has been ever since. Category:Locations Category:Locations in the Kaspari Empire Category:Locations in Lower Basaam Category:Settlements Category:Small Cities Category:Settlements in the Kaspari Empire